Should I Get A Topaz Or Diamond Engagement Ring?
Traditionally, proposing with a diamond ring has been the way to go. Some couples however choose to do something a little different. Sapphires and rubies are good options if you’re looking for a unique engagement ring, but if you don’t want color and you really like the look of a diamond, topaz may be a good option for you.
Often, we think of topaz as an orange or yellow stone, but in truth the topaz stone comes in many colors. Blue topaz is a beautiful choice, but white topaz is actually the purest form of this gem. It’s a stunning stone, typically found within inactive volcanoes inside a rock known as pegmatite. Once topaz is extracted from the pegmatite and exposed to sunlight it becomes colorless. What makes a white topaz so special? While colored topaz is beautiful, the color is the result of impurities in the stone. White topaz has no such impurities, simply sparkling clarity.
How does white topaz compare to diamonds? The price point is certainly different. while a 2 carat diamond ring with a natural stone can easily cost about $10,000, the same size white topaz will cost about 1/10 that much. You won’t want to go very large with a topaz, though, because larger stones can show scratches more easily.
This brings us to the topic of durability. Diamonds can sometimes be cracked or chipped, but they’re incredibly durable and scratch-resistant. Add gems hardness is measured on the Mohs scale of 1 to 10, and diamonds are at a 10. Topaz is an 8 which makes it the hardest naturally occurring silicate mineral, ranking below only sapphire and Ruby in hardness. That said, white topaz can be scratched much more easily than diamonds can, dulling its luster.
How does the appearance of white topaz compare to diamonds? You probably know that gemstones are rated based on clarity, cut, and color. Clarity depends on imperfections in the stone, internal inclusions of minerals that make the stone less pure. Both diamonds and topaz have internal inclusions but the only ones that matter are the ones you can see. Comparing the two stones, diamonds and topaz are fairly equal in clarity. Similarly, both stones are naturally colorless in their purest state. The round cut is popular for both diamonds and topaz, because it’s the most brilliant cut. So, which one sparkles the most? We can judge this using the refractive index which is a measure of gem brilliance. The refractive index of topaz is 1.6 but diamonds come in at 2.4, which means they have more sparkle.
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